Ski creeper



June 20, 1939.

B. HELD r AL 2,162,888

SKI CREEPER Filed Aug. 31, 19:58

lN VEN l'OR5 3617167117111 Held fl/yaw kayne 7/290 ATTORNEYS Patented June 20, 1939 UNITED STATES SKI CREEPER,

Benjamin Held, Brooklyn, and Aryan Shayne,

Claims.

Our invention relates to so-called creepers which are used in connection with skis, primarily to permit the user thereof to go up a grade without slipping backward; as is well known, the use of '5 creepers is also advantageous in coasting and other kinds of travel, the creepers having the effect of slowing up the coasting speed and of giving to the user greater control over his actions.

The principal object of our invention is to'provide a creeper which is effective and light in weight, and which also may be quickly and easily attached to or removed from the ski. Another object of our invention is to provide convenient means for attaching the creeper to the rear end of the ski which means will effectively hold the creeper on the ski under suitable tension, but which, nevertheless, will permit quick removal of the creeper. Other objects and advantages of our inventionwill appear to those skilled in the art from the following specification, taken in connection with the drawing, in which- Figure 1 shows the forward or toe end of our creeper, viewed from the bottom;

Fig. 2 shows the rear end thereof, viewed from the top;

Fig. 3 is a cross section on the line 33 of' Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a cross section on the line Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a cross section on the line 55 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 shows the form of a stamping which is used as a clamp as will be hereinafter described; Fig. 7 is a bottom view of the toe of the ski with our creeper afiixed thereto;

Fig. 8 is a side viewof the rear end of the ski with our creeper aflixed thereto;

Fig. 9 is a vertical longitudinal section of the rear end of the ski with our creeper affixed thereon; and

Fig. 10 is a detail view of our buckle in process of being separated.

Referring to the drawing, the creeper proper is shown at I. As is understood in the art, it. is preferable to make the creeper out of a strip of the skin of a fur-bearing animal; seal-skin is entirely suitable for this purpose. As is also understood, the creeper is so cut from the hide that the hair normally lies flat thereon and extends parallel to the length of the creeper, so that the creeper will slide smoothly over the snow when the ski is running in a forward direction but will create resistance to backward travel of the ski. We 55 prefer to use, as the creeper proper, a strip of 7 generally in the form of a trapezoid, and the seal-skin, with the hair remaining thereon and without reenforcement of any kind.

The forward or toe end of our creeper comprises a loop 2 of heavy cord, the free ends of which are positively held together by a metal 5 clamp 6. This clamp is stamped out of suitable metal, such as brass,the form of the stamping being shown in Fig. 6. The stamping comprises a central body portion 1 with. a plurality of prongs 8, 8' on each side thereof, the prongs on 10 one side being staggered with respect 'to those on the opposite side. In the body 1 of the stamping, U-shaped cuts are made so that portions 9 of the material of the stamping can be bent out of the plane thereof to grip the cord. Similarly, I notches are cut in the ends of the stamping so that additional portions, l0, thereof can also be bent inwardly to grip the cord. The two ends of the cord are placed adjacent'the stamping and the latter is then bent over the ends of the cord 20 in order positively to grip it, as shown in Fig. 3.

A piece of tape I I, made out of suitable material, such as heavy canvas, is then folded over the clamp 6 and sewed, as indicated at l2, so as tightly to hold the clamp and the ends of the cord 25 Within the fold of the tape.

The other end of the tape H and the tapered end E3 of the creeper are placed between pieces of leather or other suitable material M, which are tape, the end of the creepeig'and the two pieces M are then firmly sewed together.

Affixed to the upper or skin side of the creeper and extending throughout the greater part of its length and also having a free end extending beyond the rear end of the creeper, is another strip iii of tape, made of heavy canvas or other suitable material. The strip of tape is aflixed to the fur strip by stitching S5, or in any other suitable way. This strip of tape has two functions, namely, to cooperate with the ski to prevent lateral displacement of the creeper (as will be more fully explained hereinafter) and to enable the creeper to be attached to the rear end'of the 45 ski.

To accomplish the latter function we employ a novel form of buckle. This comprises a plate; l6 permanently fastened to the upper side of 5 the ski not far from its rear end, the screws I! or 50 other suitable means being used to fasten th f plate to the ski. The rearward end of the plat:

I8 is bent upward and back on itself, as ind cated at l8, thus. forming a channel in which or .e .leg of the partially closed U-shaped rod E9 may be inserted. The channel is so proportioned with respect to the form of one end of the rod [9 that the latter may be removed from the channel laterally by slightly turning the rod with respect to the plate l6. In Fig. 10, the rod is shown in the process of being removed from the channel. The end 20 of the rod I9 is bent so as to form a small hook-like member which, when the buckle is under tension, prevents removal of the rod from the channel by lateral or other motion. The other member of the buckle comprises a plate 2| which, like the plate l6, has one end, 22, thereof bent upwardly and back upon itself to form another channel which holds the other leg of the rod l9. In this case, however, the channel is so proportioned with respect to the rod and the hook-line portion 23 thereof that the rod may not be removed from the channel formed by the member 22, although the rod is free to turn within the channel.

The plate 2| bears upstanding flanges 24 along the sides thereof, the two flanges, together with the plate 2|, forming a groove in which the free end of the strip l5 may be inserted. To grip the strip tightly in the groove formed by the flanges 24 we provide a pressure member 25 which is pivoted on a shaft 26 carried by the two flanges 24. The member 25 is composed of a flat portion extending on one side of the shaft 26 and a shorter portion which may be curved, also extending from the shaft 26,-preferab.ly at an acute angle with respect to the flat portion. As will readily be understood, the strip I5 is clamped in the groove between the flanges 24 by inserting it therein beneath the pressure member 25, the latter then being turned in clockwise direction so that the shorter portion thereof tightly grips the tape between it and the plate 2 I.

In use, our ski creeper is afiixed to the ski 21 by slipping the loop 2 over the toe 28 of the ski, as shown in Fig. 7, which is a View taken from underneath the ski with the toe-end of the creeper aflixed thereto. The strip |5,.which extends beyond the rearward end of the creeper, is then bent around the rear end of the ski, placed in the groove between the flanges 24 of the buckle and under the member 25, which, at that time, is not clamped down on the strip. The U-shaped rod l9, permanently aflixed as above described to plate 2|, is thereupon inserted in the channel formed by the bent back portion I8 of the plate I6. The strip I5 is then pulled tight and the pressure member 25 clamped down thereon. The ski, with the creeper attached, is then ready for use. 7

Normally, a ski is provided, on the lower surface thereof, with a longitudinal groove 29. In placing our creeper on a ski, the strip of tape I5 is made to engage the groove 29, thereby holding the creeper against lateral motion. The use of the strip I5 for this purpose makes it unnecessary to utilize straps which extend from the creeper over the sides of the ski, and which are sometimes used to prevent lateral motion of the creeper. Thus the strip l5, in cooperation with the groove 29 in the ski, provides not only a simpler but a more effective means for preventing lateral motion of the creeper.

To remove the creeper, it is only necessary to detach the U-shaped rod l9 from the plate it by lateral motion of the plate 2|. When this has been done the creeper is entirely detached from the ski by slipping the loop 2 01f of the toe of the ski. Not only is the creeper proper thus detached but also the plate 2| of the buckle with its associated elements, including the U- shaped rod IS; the creeper may then be replaced on the ski without loosening the pressure member 25 or detaching the creeper from the plate 2|. In other words, the adjustment of the strip l5 in the buckle, when once made, need not be disturbed either to remove or replace the creeper from or on the ski.

It will readily be understood by those skilled in the art that many modifications of our improved ski creeper can be made without departing from the spirit of our invention. We, therefore, desire to secure protection for all such modifications as may come within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A ski creeper comprising in combination a strip of fur adapted to lie against the lower side of the ski, one end thereof being tapered; a flexible strip attached to such tapered end of the fur strip; a flexible loop carried by the flexible strip; a narrow strip affixed along the longitudinal center of the upper side of said fur strip and extending beyond the other end of said fur strip; an element affixed to the upper side of the ski adjacent the rear end thereof; a U-shaped member detachably associated with said element; and a second element carrying a pressure member adapted to engage a freeportion of said narrow strip, said U-shaped member being permanently associated with said second element.

2. Means for attaching a creeper to a ski comprising in combination a narrow strip of canvas or similar material affixed to one end of the creeper; a plate aflixed to the ski, one end of said plate being bent back upon itself to form a channel; a U-shaped member, one leg of which passes through said channel and is removable therefrom; a second plate,'one end of which is bent back upon itself to form a channel, the other leg of said U-shaped member being permanently but rotatably held in said last-mentioned channel; and means for clamping said narrow strip to said second plate.

3. A device according to claim 2 wherein said second plate carries upstanding flanges and said clamping means is composed of a pressure member located adjacent said second plate and between said flanges.

4. A device according to claim 2 wherein said U-shaped member is provided with means preventing the removal of said member from said first-mentioned channel when said narrow strip is under tension.

5. Means for attaching a creeper to a ski comprising in combination a strip of canvas or similar material affixed to the creeper; a plate amxed to the ski, one end of said plate being bent back upon itself to form a channel; a second plate, one end of which is bent back upon itself to form a channel; a U-shaped member, one leg of which passes through one of said channels and the other leg of which passes through the other of said channels, one leg of the U-shaped member being removable from its channel and the other leg thereof being permanently but rotatably held in its channel; and means for clamping said strip to said second plate.

BENJAMIN HELD. ARYAN SHAYNE. 

